The disclosed embodiments relate to a medical device. Specifically, the disclosed embodiments relate to catheters to be inserted into a blood vessel, an alimentary canal, a ureter, etc., and more particularly, to a tip of a braid that serves as a reinforcing member of the catheter.
Catheters to be inserted into a blood vessel, an alimentary canal, a ureter, etc., include an inner layer made of a resin, an outer layer that covers the outer periphery of the inner layer and that is made of a resin, and a braid interposed between the inner layer and the outer layer and serves as a reinforcing member. To achieve the performances (pushing performance, torque transmission performance, pressure resistance, etc.) required of the catheters, the braid is generally formed by weaving wires made of a metal, such as tungsten or stainless steel.
The wires included in the braid tend to spread apart at the distal end of the braid owing to the tension of the wires. To prevent this, a braid including a weld portion that extends in the circumferential direction and in which the wires are welded together at the distal end of the braid has been proposed (see, for example, International Publication No. 2008/019236). According to this publication, the weld portion is formed in a region where the wires cross each other, and then excess portions of the wires in a region on the distal side of the weld portion are removed. Thus, the braid including the weld portion that extends in the circumferential direction at the distal end thereof is formed.